Pastry Chef v BBQ Chef: Who will die first?

[gfron1]

I know this is a silly question, but I think there's something at the root of the question that might be of value:  

 

If sugar and carbs (according to common wisdom) make us fat, and high protein diets make us skinny, then why is almost every pastry chef I know skinny, and most BBQ chefs and butchers fat?

 

My prep cook astutely posed the follow-up question. Who has the longer life expectancy?

[gfron1]

Proposed double irony. Pastry tends to be dominated by women. Meat tends to be dominated by men. Women physiologically are more inclined to weight gain. Yes, I suggest that pastry chefs tend to be thin.

[Anna N]

Because correlation and causation are not the same thing?

[gfweb]

Weight increases with age (and beer).  I picture BBQ chefs as fat 50 yr olds and pastry chefs as skinny young runners.

[CatPoet]

Pastry chef live in another culture then BBQ chefs, less alcohol and more stress  ( that is what a friend who worked both says).

[Dave W]

Women have some kind of thermodynamic advantage regarding weight gain? That's novel.

[CatPoet]

I am talking with my friend, when he , yes a man,  switch from being a BBQ chef  to pastry chef , he lost  in 1 year  25 kilos in weight  just  because he didnt have time to drink or eat at the job, he prefers  pastry chef  to BBQ Chef.

[Lisa Shock]

It's the beer. No beer belly. Pastry chefs don't have a lot of time to hang around drinking beer. We arrive at work at the crack of midnight or so, and work hard with lots of heavy lifting and running around multi-tasking. If we're very lucky, we have another person or two to work with, many work alone. Social isolation can be the norm for many, and beer is seen as a social drink. We're off kilter with the rest of the world's schedule when we're off work (can't go out to eat a real dinner at 9am unless we live in the heart of a big city), and are simply out of step with beer drinking culture for the most part.  It's difficult to find drinking buddies who wanna go paint the town at, say, 10am. Not to say that we don't drink, we generally are in charge of an arsenal of great bottles of spirits and liqueurs at work, although it's usually carefully measured and monitored, and we don't have time to drink on the job. (it also might be dangerous, we use a lot of heavy equipment, and do a lot of precision work)

 

BBQ guys seem to have free-flowing beer on hand for on-the-job imbibing, and they don't have to do much fine detail work.

[gfweb]

Women have some kind of thermodynamic advantage regarding weight gain?

 

 

Everybody knows that.

[jmacnaughtan]

May be because it's easy to get tired of eating sweet food.  Less so for barbecued meat and beer.

 

I could really go for some of that right now.

[pastrygirl]

Pastry chefs are too busy running around being OCD.  BBQ is more about tending the meat and fire, more slow & sedentary (my impression at least).  If all you eat all day are a few brownie scraps in between sprints up the stairs to the walk-in, they don't pack on as quickly.   

[rotuts]

Aaron Franklin is pretty slim.

 

maybe espresso needs to be added to the beer  :  Beerespresso.

 

Michael Richard is a pastry chef.    he's pretty round.

 

that's hard data, right there.

Edited May 21, 2015 by rotuts (log)

[radtek]

I can guarantee you that there isn't much time for inaction at any BBQ joint either.

 

Simple fact is that barbeque is far more loaded with calories, primarily due to fat content. Pastry and desserts cannot compete with the caloric density of BBQ.

[gfron1]

 

 

that's hard data, right there.

That's good since we irked some with this mindless banter. We all know there is nothing realistic here, just very random experiential "evidence," which to my mind makes it kind of fun to think about. Maybe it'll be fodder for some aspiring tv writer to do sitcom that's rooted in stereotype and misinformation  I'd watch it.

[gfweb]

Memphis in May BBQ championships.  Good bit of avoirdupois on those boys.

 

 http://www.memphisinmay.org/wcbcc-teams

 

Ditto Iowa

http://www.iowabbqchampionship.com/

[gfweb]

 Maybe it'll be fodder for some aspiring tv writer to do sitcom that's rooted in stereotype and misinformation  I'd watch it.

 

Now  that would be a first.

[CatPoet]

Can we get George Clooney and Hellen Mirren in it and I am watching it.

[rotuts]

Geo. = Pastry

 

Hellen = BBQ ?

[Norm Matthews]

How is sipping on a beer while watching a log burn in a 'fireplace' gonna kill anyone?  

[dcarch]

I visit a few BBQ/griller/smoker forums. Those forums often have annual member meets. Plenty of group pictures. Shocking to see rampant obesity in those group shots.

 

It's not the meat that make them fat, IMHO, it's the cheese covered, bacon wrapped potatoes, deep fried bread, cakes, pasta ---------- washed down with gallons of beer.

 

dcarch

[CatPoet]

Rotuts, that would be ace.   

 

Here  you cant cook and drink if you are working,  I asked about it  when I was at the   American style BBQ restaurant in town. They have to stay sober and they are trying to make good healthy choices with the grilled food. One of the skinny lads working there and I had good chat about it and yes all the guys are skinny or normal weight.

[Norm Matthews]

Cat Poet, it's the same here.  The stereotype of BBQers is that they are beer guzzling, obese, bike riding gangsters.  There may be some competition BBQers  and backyard hobbyists like that but there are also lots who aren't.  People who own restaurants and the people who work in them are just like any other professional food service place.   Like bakers, they even keep similar hours since it takes all night, every day to cook BBQ for  the public.

Edited May 23, 2015 by Norm Matthews (log)

[heidih]

Further to Norm's comment above you may want to check out this series of articles on Serious Eats about a BBQ restaurant start-up. Ironman stamina required! http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/08/signing-a-lease-new-york-restaurant-bulding-barbecue.html

[Norm Matthews]

But BBQ consumers do drink beer.  It's a style of food created for the masses and used cuts of meat thistorically available to the the poorer segments of the country.  It isn't the kind of food to serve with crystal, fine silver and china and a bottle of vintage Cabernet Sauvignon.

[FauxPas]

Heidi, I was thinking of that series also. It's a great read! The Arrogant Swine, in Brooklyn. 

 

This link shows all the installments, makes it a bit easier to browse the topics 

 

http://www.seriouseats.com/building-a-bbq-restaurant

 

The most recent one, on being a boss, had some pretty powerful stuff. 

Edited May 23, 2015 by FauxPas (log)